# Why do we have emotions?

- Institution: Gresham College
- Speaker: Professor Robin May
- Year: 2025
- Level: For everyone
- Language: English
- Subjects: Biology, Psychology and the brain
- Source: [Gresham College](https://www.gresham.ac.uk/watch-now/series/why-emotions)
- Licence: [Educational use (Gresham College's terms)](https://www.gresham.ac.uk/terms-and-conditions)
- Who can watch: Teens profiles and older (sources give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the source's own words)

Fear is one of the earliest emotions to have evolved. Most vertebrates – and possibly some invertebrates – show fear when they are threatened. At its most core, fear keeps us alive, helping us flee from predators or avoid dangerous environments. But why does this process sometimes backfire, leaving us paralysed by otherwise harmless phobias? And why do so many people deliberately seek out fearful situations, from horror movies to parachute jumps, when instinct tells us to do the opposite?

## Lectures

1. [Why Do We Fear?](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/learn/gresham/series-why-emotions/0168a4d6fe27) (Audio)
2. [Why Do We Laugh?](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/learn/gresham/series-why-emotions/fff41721d423) (Audio)
3. [Why Do We Grieve?](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/learn/gresham/series-why-emotions/e0cd0e7231ff) (Audio)
4. [Why Do We Hate?](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/learn/gresham/series-why-emotions/2724401d5909) (Audio)
5. [Why Do We Love?](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/learn/gresham/series-why-emotions/fa388a6a0771) (Audio)
6. [Should We Manipulate People’s Emotions?](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/learn/gresham/series-why-emotions/17449622339a) (Audio)